Eshinee Veith said:
What I find most helpful about Vanderkooi's book is that it enables you to connect a wide range of symptoms to a wide range of underlying potential causes for those symptoms. Starting with whatever your most dramatic (primary) symptom is, you look up that symptom and make a note of the potential causes. Then, you look up your other symptoms, making note which ones share potential causes with your primary symptom. Once you narrow down your list of potential causes, you can get a sense of which treatments a healthcare professional might recommend. I like to get a solid sense of what I probably have before I even set foot inside a doctor's office, especially if there are a wide variety of treatment options. I look up each potential treatment, noting its side effects and make a preliminary decision about which I would prefer to use before seeing the doctor. Occasionally, a doctor will suggest a treatment that I would consider to be overkill for whatever seems to be the likely condition. In those cases, I will ask about whether or not I might try a less radical approach. Generally, my healthcare providers have responded favorably and allow me to select my own treatments, as long as they are within the range of options that they believe to be appropriate for my condition.